1. I had my 6-week postpartum checkup today. It’s always so weird and feels so abrupt to go from frequent pregnancy appointments to just being done “cold turkey.” It’s good in that it means I’m healthy and don’t need to see a doctor regularly, but it’s still a bit of a shock to the system.
2. We decorated our Christmas tree this week. A few years ago we switched from an artificial one to a live one (this is the third year), and it’s really nice. I like the piney scent that a live tree gives. Plus it’s a nice family activity to go to the tree sales places and pick the “perfect tree.” I think we really nailed it this year!
3. Homeschooling has been pretty lackluster since baby arrived. I tried to get us going again after three weeks, but that put us firmly in the Christmas season. I think it’s best if we just embrace the season and work extra hard in the new year, so that’s what we’re going to do. That gives me two full weeks to get ready, too, which will be good (and needed).
4. I’m excited to be a part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew for the third year. I’ve got a new role this year as Mentor, which means that I’ve been assigned three new members to take under my wing and help them out during their early reviews. I’ve been reading their blogs lately (As We Bloom, Our Whiskey Lullaby, and Scott Family Stories). They’re really good – these ladies are talented writers – and I hope you’ll check them out, too. One of them, Rebecca from Scott Family Stories, had a baby right around the same time I had Dragonfly, so I feel a bit of camaraderie with her 🙂
5. We’re doing the four-gifts-per-child for Christmas again this year: “Something they want, something they need, something to wear, and something to read.” This will apply to all of them except Dragonfly. Because of his medical bills, his gift budget is much smaller than the others! Anyway, we already gave them their “something they need” gift, because, well, they needed it! The two older boys got new coats and Small Fry got some new socks. I’m a bit smarter with his socks this time than ever before, though. When he’s not wearing them, they’re safety pinned together in an effort at loss prevention. They go through the laundry pinned together, they go into his clothes basket (instead of a dresser) pinned together, and are only unpinned first thing in the morning when he puts them on. I’ve been doing this with Dragonfly’s socks, too, and it’s working like a charm so far.
And just for fun, a new pic of baby: his first caught-on-film smile 🙂
Blessings,
